William Bradford was born in Yorkshire, England in 1590 and orphaned at a young age. He joined a group of Separatists who fled religious persecution in England and settled in Leiden, Holland in 1608. In 1620, Bradford helped organize the Mayflower expedition to establish a colony in North America. He helped draft the Mayflower Compact and was unanimously elected as governor of Plymouth colony, a position he held for 30 years. Bradford authored Of Plymouth Plantation, an eyewitness account of the colony's early years that remains a primary source of information on the Pilgrims.

1. 1590-1657

2.  Born in 1590 in
Yorkshire, England.
 Orphaned both from
parents and
grandparents, he and
older sister Alice were
raised by their uncle
Robert Bradford.

3.  Bradford, at the age
of 18, joined with the
group of Separatists
that fled from
England in fear of
persecution, arriving
in Amsterdam in
1608.

4.  Bradford
migrated to
Holland with
the rest of the
group and
lived 11 years
in Leiden.

6.  In 1620 he helped
organize the
Mayflower's
expedition to the
New World.

7.  Literal authority of the Bible
 The Bible as a topological model
 Original depravity
 Limited atonement
 Predestination

8.  A drive toward solidarity and consensus and
a championing of individual thought
 An emphasis on individual responsibility
and on a personal relationship with God
 A belief in the special destiny of New
England
 A special emphasis on reading correctly,
both sacred texts and the events of
everyday life

10.  To bind the group
into a political body,
Bradford helped draft
the important
Mayflower Compact
en route to America.

11. • Earliest document of
democracy in
America.
 Lays the foundation for
direct popular
government.
• Drawn up for the
general good by
mutual agreement of
the majority of the
people.

12.  Bradford helped select the
site for the new colony.
 In 1621, after the colony's
first, disastrous winter, he
was unanimously elected
governor,
• served in that position for some
30 years between 1621 and
1656

14.  Began writing Of
Plymouth Plantation in
1630 and continued the
project until 1647.
• As an account of the
Pilgrims, it is a major
historical and literary
achievement of the time.
 Still the primary source of
information about the
Plymouth settlement.

15.  Eyewitness accounts
of happenings.
 Considered to be a
trustworthy narrator.
• Avowed his purpose to
write “in a plain style,
with singular regard
unto the simple truth in
all things.”

16.  Not published in Bradford’s lifetime.
• Passed down through family
• Lost during Revolutionary War
• Reappeared nearly a century later in England
• Published for first time by Massachusetts
Historical Society in 1856.